More than half a million students took a crucial university entrance exam in South Korea on Thursday, so important that authorities even temporarily suspended air traffic to avoid noise pollution.
The nine-hour test, which 504,588 students will take this year, is crucial to securing a place at top universities.
It is also considered a path to high social status, lucrative careers and even good marriage prospects.
This exam, called “suneung” in Korean, is so important that authorities have taken drastic measures to prevent disruptions during the exam.
To reduce noise pollution while listening to the English test, the Seoul Transportation Department has announced a nationwide ban on all aircraft takeoffs and landings for 35 minutes, except in emergency situations.
AFP
With the exception of aircraft in distress, all flying aircraft must maintain an altitude above 3,000 meters during this short period of time. As a result of the review, more than 90 flights had to be postponed.
Public services and large companies have been asked to adjust their opening hours to avoid congestion and ensure students arrive on time for the national exam, which began at 8:40 a.m. local time.
The stock market also opened an hour later than usual.
For this year’s exam, authorities have dispensed with “killer questions,” questions that cannot be answered by studying the public school curriculum alone, to reduce reliance on expensive private schools.
“Questions of appropriate difficulty were selected … to ensure that (students) could demonstrate their aptitude based solely on the content covered in the public education curriculum,” said Jeong Moon-seong, a senior university professor who oversaw the administration of the exam this year Journalists.
AFP
The enormous pressure placed on students in South Korea’s highly competitive education system has been blamed for causing depression and suicide among teenagers, rates of which are among the highest in the world.
According to official statistics, South Korean households spent more than $20 billion on private tuition for elementary, middle and high school students last year.